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Tuareg 'Cross' Silver Pendant Necklace
One-Of-A-Kind
The history of beads dates back to our ancient ancestors of some 40,000 years ago. The earliest known beads were made out of readily available materials such as bone, ivory, teeth, seeds, stone, wood and resins. It's believed the first beads were worn as protection against uncontrollable events and the forces of nature, as well as to show one's status in the community and to enhance beauty. When glass was discovered about 3,400 years ago, it became the material of choice and facilitated trade between peoples.
Trade beads, as we know them, were originally created in Venice, Bohemia and Holland. The history of these trade beads dates back to the end of the fifteenth century when Portuguese trading ships, using beads as ballast for the outbound trip, arrived on the coast of West Africa to exploit its many resources, including gold, slaves, ivory and palm oil. Beads were the major component of the currency exchanged for people and products.
Over the next four hundred years, millions of beads were traded to Africa, and by the nineteenth century, European bead makers were producing a wide variety of designs specifically for the African trade, such as Millefiori (thousand flowers), chevrons, feather, and eye beads.
This beautiful pendant measures 3 1/2 by 1 7/8 inches and hangs from a strand of black trade beads. It is not intended to be, in the Christian sense, a cross, but people persist in perceiving them as such because of the shape. It is given by a father to his son in Mali as a protective amulet. The shape actually represents the four corners of the world which makes sense when you are a nomadic people. The silver content is unknown, and the clasp is the traditional one.
Gift Box Included!!
Length: 18 inches
The history of beads dates back to our ancient ancestors of some 40,000 years ago. The earliest known beads were made out of readily available materials such as bone, ivory, teeth, seeds, stone, wood and resins. It's believed the first beads were worn as protection against uncontrollable events and the forces of nature, as well as to show one's status in the community and to enhance beauty. When glass was discovered about 3,400 years ago, it became the material of choice and facilitated trade between peoples.
Trade beads, as we know them, were originally created in Venice, Bohemia and Holland. The history of these trade beads dates back to the end of the fifteenth century when Portuguese trading ships, using beads as ballast for the outbound trip, arrived on the coast of West Africa to exploit its many resources, including gold, slaves, ivory and palm oil. Beads were the major component of the currency exchanged for people and products.
Over the next four hundred years, millions of beads were traded to Africa, and by the nineteenth century, European bead makers were producing a wide variety of designs specifically for the African trade, such as Millefiori (thousand flowers), chevrons, feather, and eye beads.
This beautiful pendant measures 3 1/2 by 1 7/8 inches and hangs from a strand of black trade beads. It is not intended to be, in the Christian sense, a cross, but people persist in perceiving them as such because of the shape. It is given by a father to his son in Mali as a protective amulet. The shape actually represents the four corners of the world which makes sense when you are a nomadic people. The silver content is unknown, and the clasp is the traditional one.
Gift Box Included!!
Length: 18 inches
$75.00
SKU: TSP-N102